The Peace Corps' new offices close to Los Angeles International Airport make El Segundo an ideal location.

Read and comment on this story from the Daily Breeze on Peace Corps' new office space for its Los Angeles Office in El Segundo. At the Federal Building in Westwood, the organization had to cram 14 people into little more than 2,000 square feet of office space. Now the group has 5,000 square feet of offices with vaulted ceilings to work with. That extra space will come as a real blessing as the Peace Corps doubles its staff to help meet a mandate from President Bush to double recruitment numbers within the next five years. The new location's proximity to Los Angeles International Airport, the nearby Metro Green Line, close access to major freeways, clear road conditions — compared to West Los Angeles — makes El Segundo an ideal location. Read the story at:

El Segundo, home to the Chevron refinery, aerospace giants, the Los Angeles Air Force Base and now . . . the Peace Corps?

While it may be against the grain of this heavily military and industrial city, the international volunteer agency has traded in its cramped West Los Angeles digs at the Federal Building for a bigger, swankier office in El Segundo’s Rosecrans corridor.

“Our old office was a small, dark dungeon compared to this place,” said Emily Farrell, a recruiter with the Peace Corps. “We just had too many people in too small a space over there. This place is a paradise compared to it.”

Though the local group did not have much say in the bureaucratic decision of where it would end up, members did place the El Segundo office at the top of their list.

At the Federal Building in Westwood, the organization had to cram 14 people into little more than 2,000 square feet of office space. Now the group has 5,000 square feet of offices with vaulted ceilings to work with.

That extra space will come as a real blessing as the group doubles its staff to help meet a mandate from President Bush to double recruitment numbers within the next five years.

Its meeting room’s capacity has expanded from 25 to 125 people. Select staffers have exchanged their cubicles for offices with real walls and doors.

But above all, traffic has all but disappeared as a problem for the group. The city’s proximity to Los Angeles International Airport, the nearby Metro Green Line, close access to major freeways, clear road conditions — compared to West Los Angeles — made El Segundo an ideal location.

“At the Federal Building it would take us 30 to 40 minutes just to get out of the parking lot sometimes,” said Jill Andrews, regional manager for the Peace Corps. “We have people on the road every day traveling all across Southern California. We can’t afford to waste time like that.”

About every two days someone from the office boards a plane at LAX and many staffers have traded-in rush-hour commutes for peaceful rides on the nearby Green Line.

The El Segundo location will handle the Peace Corps’ recruitment for Southern California and Arizona. That area includes nearly 190 colleges and universities the Corps’ recruiters regularly visit.

It regularly brings in 1,500 people, but only about half of them actually make it into the Peace Corps.

More than 160,000 people have volunteered for the Peace Corps since its inception in 1961.

Given the potential closure of the Los Angeles Air Force Base, local real estate broker Bill Goodglick says the Peace Corps move is a positive advancement for El Segundo’s east side, an aerospace-heavy business area.

“It’s an example of how that whole Rosecrans corridor has really changed into a very unique mix of retail, office, hotel and restaurant use,” Goodglick said. “While the office itself is a mere drop in the ocean as far as office space goes, it shows the change of the area from primarily aerospace to other industries.”

Goodglick pointed to the Raleigh movie studios and DirecTV as other examples of businesses adding to the diversity of the regional economy.

The Peace Corps moved to the El Segundo location in March, but will officially open its doors Tuesday.

The ceremony will include cultural displays, guest speakers, high school students in cultural costumes and a collection of international desserts.BS Want to go?

Publish Date:May 4, 2003 More about the Opening of the New Office on May 6

Read more about the new Peace Corps Office in Los Angeles at:

The Los Angeles Peace Corps Office would like to cordially invite RPCVLA to the official red ribbon cutting, grand opening of the new Peace Corps Regional office! They have a beautiful new office to serve potential and current applicants, nominees, invitees, and a much enlarged space to serve Returned Peace Corps Volunteers.

The special event will include international desserts, the inauguration of the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers’ Art Gallery, special guest speakers, Peace Corps Volunteer slideshows, and we will be honoring RPCV Amanda Wash with the first Los Angeles Peace Corps Humanitarian Award. Local El Segundo and Pasadena high school students will be modeling different cultural outfits while you feast.

This is an excellent chance for you to meet other Returned Volunteers, applicants, nominees, and Peace Corps staff and to learn more about Peace Corps and the opportunities that await you!

The LA Office also is requesting RPCVs interested in setting up a table at the reception about their country of service. If you are interested, please include a little note in your reply, so they will know to contact you regarding the details.

Look forward to seeing you there! (You are welcome to bring family and friends interested in attending.)Click on a link below for more stories on PCOL

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